Apparatus for feeding articles to automatic screw drivers



0. H. TRIMBLE June 22, 1954 6 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed May 8. 1951 E I 5 mQxk L 3 .S Q 7 R B 6\ nr 5 u 2. mm A m M H N 3 a [ll Y W T M Q .illll umI. U o C v. A. HIP II" 8 mm vm PK 3 8 mm 3 9w [.QN 1 n mm, 0 nuum 2m J1J O Q 2 2 3 N\ mm .5 2

June 22, 1954 TRlMBLE 2,681,461

APPARATUS FOR FEEDING ARTICLES TO AUTOMATIC SCREW DRIVERS Filed May 8.1951 s Sheets-Sheet 2 A w L Q lNl/ENTOR C. H. T lMBLE Ari'oR/vEs June22, 1954 c TRMBLE 2,681,461

APPARATUS FOR FEEDING ARTICLES TO AUTOMATIC SCREW DRIVERS Filed May 8,1951 6 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTOR C. H. T R/MBLE /-"/a. /2 BY ATTORNEY June22, 1954 c. H. TRIMBLE APPARATUS FOR FEEDING ARTICLES TO AUTOMATIC SCREWDRIVERS 6 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed ma a, 195i m/vzs/vron C. H. TR/MBLEATI'ORNEY June 22, 1954 c, H TRMBL 2,681,461

APPARATUS FOR FEEDING ARTICLES TO AUTOMATIC SCREW DRIVERS Filed May 8,1951 6 Sheets-Sheet 5 INVENTOR C. H. TR/MBLE rron/v51 Jufie 1954 c. H.TRIMBLE 2,681,461

APPARATUS FOR FEEDING ARTICLES TO AUTOMATIC SCREW DRIVERS Filed May 8,1951 6 Sheets-Sheet 6 FIG 7 INVENTOR v C. H TR/MBLE 5y ATTORNEY PatentedJune 22, 1954 APPARATUS FOR FEEDING ARTICLES TO AUTOMATIC SCREW DRIVERSCharles H. Trimble, Winston-Salem, N. (3., assignor to Western ElectricCompany, Incorporated, New York, N. Y., a corporation of New YorkApplication May 8, 1951, Serial No. 225,160

4 Claims.

This invention relates to apparatus for feeding articles, and moreparticularly to apparatus for feeding washers in position to beassembled on cable terminal strips or the like.

Cable terminal strips used with communications apparatus may comprise aflat base plate made of electrical insulating material and a plurlity ofterminal posts secured spacedly in parallel longitudinal rows on theplate. Each post is provided with a pair of washers and a screw forconnecting the individual conductors of a cable to the posts of theterminal strip. Various types of screwdriver apparatus have beendeveloped for automatically threading a screw into a threaded hole ofsuch a terminal post, but in the manufacture of terminal strips, adevice for feeding washers automatically in position to be secured tothe post by a screw must be used in connection with a screwdriverapparatus. Heretofore, no suitable apparatus has been developed forfeeding washers in position to be attached to a terminal post by a screwthreaded therein by automatic screwdriver apparatus.

An object of the invention is to provide. new and improved apparatus forfeeding articles.

Another object of the invention is to provide new and improved apparatusfor feeding washers in position to be assembled on a cable terminalstrip by automatic screwdriver apparatus.

An apparatus for feeding articles in position to be assembled on a partin accordance with certain features of the invention, may include asupport having means on one end thereof for holding an article inposition to be assembled on a part, means provided on the support forholding a supply of articles in predetermined positions, means forsliding an article from the supply means to the holding means, and meansfor actuating the article sliding means so as to feed articlessuccessively to the holding means provided on the support.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will appear from thefollowing detailed description of a specific embodiment thereof, whenread in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a front elevation of an apparatus embodying certain featuresof the invention;

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the apparatus shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged vertical section taken along line 3-3 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a horizontal section taken along line 4-4 of Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 is the same as Fig. 4, but showing some of the elements indifierent operating positions;

Fig. 6 is a vertical section taken along line 66 of Fig. 4

Fig. '7 is the same as Fig. 6 except that some of the elements are shownin different operating positions;

Fig. 8 is an enlarged fragmentary section taken along line 8-8 of Fig.4;

Fig. 9 is the same as Fig. 8, but showing some of the parts in differentpositions;

Fig. 10 is a vertical section taken along line iii-40 of Fig. 8;

Fig. 11 is a fragmentary section taken along line li-E l of Fig. 8; and

Fig. 12 is a schematic diagram of the fluid pres sure system foroperating the apparatus shown in Figs. 1 and 2.

Referring now to the drawings, and more particularly to Figs. 1, 2 and3, there is shown an elongated terminal strip indicated generally at l ipositioned in a fixture l2 and supported on rollers I3-l3 forming partof an indexing apparatus indicated generally by the numeral l4. Theterminal strip It includes a rectangular base plate :6, made of asuitable electrical insulating material, and a plurality of terminalposts |1-- l7 secured spacedly on the plate in parallel longitudinal andtransverse rows. Each of the terminal posts l'lll has an end portion 18extending beyond one side of the base which is designed to have anelectrical conductor soldered thereto. The opposite end of each of theposts ll-I'i projects from the opposite side of the plate and isprovided with a tapped hole 20 (Fig. 8).

The indexing apparatus Hi (Figs. 1 and 2) is designed to position theterminal posts l1-|1 of a terminal strip l I successively in such aposition that a washer 22 (Fig. 3), supplied by a washer feedingapparatus indicated generally at 23, may be attached to one of the postsl'l-ll by a screw 25 threaded into the tapped hole 21'! of the post byan automatic screwdriver apparatus indicated generally at 21. Theindexing apparatus M is disclosed fully and claimed in copendingapplication Serial No. 225,188, filed May 8, 1951, by Mr. C. B. Lubbert,for Article Assembling Apparatus, and consequently will be describedherein only insofar as is necessary for a complete understanding of thepresent invention.

The indexing apparatus 54 (Figs. 1 and 2) comprises generally arectangular frame 28 having legs 29-29 for supporting the frame asuitable distance from the floor. The rollers I3-l3 are journalled insupports transversely to the longitudinal axis of the frame 28 tosupport the terminal strip I l carried in the fixture l2 in a horizontalposition with respect to the washer feeding apparatus 23. An indexingwheel 30 having a plurality of grooves 3 l-3l equally spaced about itsperiphery is secured to a shaft 32 journalled transversely across theframe 28 so that the end portions l8l8 of the terminal posts engage thegrooves 3l-3l in the wheel, as is best shown in Fig. 3. A handwheel 33is secured on one end of the shaft 32 for turning the wheel 30 in eitherdirection, and an indexing means, not shown, is provided for steppinguniformly the wheel 38 so that each of the grooves 3'l3l in turn may bealigned vertically with the axis of the shaft 32 when viewed in Fig. 1.

Indexing wheels 35-35, having transverse grooves 3i-38 equally spacedabout the periphery thereof, are secured spacedly on a shaft 3i,journalled longitudinally on the frame '28 (Fig. 2), so that the groovesare aligned longitudinally. Indexing wheels itit, having grooves ll-13!equall spaced about the periphery thereof, are secured spacedly on ashaft 42, journalled longitudinally on the frame 28, so that theirrespective grooves are aligned longitudinally. The shafts 3i and ii arejournalled on the frame 28 so that their axes of rotation are alignedwith each other, and are so spaced with respect to the rollers 43-43that the end portions I$--l8 of the posts H-ii engage the grooves 36-46and iiili of the wheels 35-35 and 4tlb, re-

spectively. A handwheel 43 is provided for turning a shaft id in eitherdirection, which shaft is in turn arranged to impart a turning movementto the shafts 3i and lfi and the wheels 535 and it-4D secured thereon ina direction corresponding to the movement or handwheel' iii.

The terminal strip H carried by the fixture i2 may be positioned on therollers iii-l3 so that some of the posts of any desired longitudinal rowof posts engages the grooves 36--3fi and ii-4i of the indexing wheels35-35 and W4ii. When the end portions of the studs in any longitudinalrow of terminal posts engage the grooves in the wheels 3535 and i0l0,they are aligned to be engaged by the uppermost groove 3! in theindexing wheel 30. Movement of the handwheel 233 in a counterclockwisedirect ion, when viewed in Fig. 1, causes the grooves '3l-'3l of thindexing wheel 30 to engage the end portions I3!8 of the terminal postsll-l'l and move the terminal strip l I post-by-post from right to left.During this movement of the terminal strip H, the grooves lit-38 andil-4| of the indexing wheels 35i5 and til-dd, respectively, guide theterminal strip longitudinally on the frame, and prevent excesstransverse movement of the terminal strip. As the terminal strip II ismoved toward the left-hand end of the frame 28, when viewed in Fig. 2,the frame I? rests on rollers 45-65 journalled transversely across theframe 28 in a manner like that shown for the rollers l3l3.

A clockwise movement of the handwheel 43, when viewed in Fig. 1, turnsthe indexing wheels 35-35 and times so as to move the terminal strip Hfrom the rear of the frame 28 toward the front of the frame 28, asviewed in Fig. 2. Indexing means, not shown, is provided on thehandwheel $3 to center the indexing wheels 35-35 and MF- ill so thateach successive movement of the handwheel '43 advances the terminalstrip II a distance equal to the spacing be- 4 tween the longitudinalrows of terminal posts provided on the terminal strip l i with respectto the washer feeding apparatus 23. It is believed to be apparent fromthe above description of the indexing apparatus that by propermanipulation of handwheels 33 and 13, each of the terminal posts il -llof a terminal strip, I! may be aligned successively with the washerfeeding apparatus 23 and the screwdriver apparatus 2? so that washers22-22 and screws 26-46 may be secured to each of the terminal posts in amanner hereinafter to be described.

The screwdriver apparatus, indicated generally at 21, does not form anypart of the present invention, and will be described only so far asnecessary for a complete understanding of the invention. The screwdriverapparatus 2'! includes a clamp it designed to hold a screw 26 directlybeneath a screwdriver bit il. The screws 262ii are supplied from asuitable hopper, not shown, through a chute iii to a position inwhichthey can be readily engaged by the clamp 33. The screwdriver apparatus2? is provided with means, not shown, for lowering the clamp 56 and thescrewdriver bit li simultaneously so as to position the end of a screw26 in the tapped bore 20 of a terminal post H aligned with thescrewdriver bit ll, after which the clamp 46 is withdrawn and thescrewdriver continues to move downwardly and thread the screw 25 intothe tapped bore of the post.

The washer feeding apparatus 23 (Figs. 1, 2 and 3) is designed to feedwashers 2222 into a position in which the body of a screw 25 passesthrough the central aperture of the washer, whereby the washer issecured to the terminal post when the screwdriver bit 5'5 threads thescrew into the tapped hole of a terminal post aligned therewith. Thewasher feeding apparatus 23 is shown in more detail in Figs. 3 to 10,inclusive, and includes a box-like guide59 having a rectangular openingin extending there-- through and grooves 5252 formed at the bottom ofthe opening for receiving an actuator indicated generall at 55. Theactuator 55 comprises a plate ss positioned slidably in the grooves5252, and a head 5'5 secured to the plate 56.

The head 57 ofthe actuator 55 is connected to one end of a piston rod58, the other end of which is secured to a piston, not shown, of an aircylinder Bil (Figs. 1 and 2) provided for reciprocating the actuatorbetween predetermined limits on the guide 553.

A post 5! (Fig. 5) secured to the head 51 of the actuator 55 extendsupwardly through a slot 52 provided in the top of the guide 59, througha slot 63 provided in a support (it and engages an aperture provided ina cam 56 mounted slidably on the plate as by means of parallel tracks61-6? (Figs. 3 and 4). The plate 6c is mounted slidably on posts lt-liisecured spacedly to the top of the guide 56, and is urged downwardly onthe posts by a compression spring H (Fig. 3) acting on a plunger 72positioned slidably in a retainer i3 secured to a bracket T4 attached tothe guide as. One end of the plunger '52 engages the end of a push rodl6 (Figs. 6 and 7) secured to the support at. The push rod Hi extendsthrough an aperture 'H provided in the top of the guide 5i! into therectangular opening 5! and has a roller 73 mounted on the end thereof.When the actuator 55 is positioned in the left end of the rectangularopening as, as viewed in Fig. 7, a lug 85 mounted on the plate 56 of theactuator engages the roller F8 on the push rod I6 and positions thesupport 64 in its upper most position (Figs. 3 and 7) The cam 66 (Fig.4) is provided with a slot 8| positioned at a predetermined angle withthe longitudinal axis of the cam, and a slot 82 aligned with thelongitudinal axis of the cam in the tracks 6'I6I and communicating withthe slot 8|. The slot 8| is engaged by a follower 83 secured rotatablyon the end of a bar 84 forming a part of an ejector indicated generallyat 85. The bar 84 of the ejector 85 is mounted slidably in a groove 86(Figs. 4, 8 and 10), positioned obliquely in the support 64, and has theopposite end thereof connected to a stud 81 extending through a slot 88provided in the support 64 (Fig. 8). A finger 90 has one end attached tothe end of the stud and slidably engages a groove 9| provided in theunderside of the support 64, as shown in Figs. 8 and 10. When theactuator 55 is positioned at the left end of the rectangular opening 50,as viewed in Fig. 7, the angularly positioned slot BI engages thefollower 83, as viewed in Fig. 4, and positions the finger 90 of theejector 85 so that the right end of the finger is adjacent to anaperture 93 (Fig. 8) provided in the support 64 and communicating withthe groove 9|. A tube 94 is mounted in a counterbore of the aperture 93and is designed to hold a supply of washers 22-22 and feed the washersby gravity into the aperture 93. A cover 95 secured on the underside ofthe support 64, extends across the groove 9I (Fig. 8), and holds thelowermost washer in the aperture 93 in position to be engaged by the endof the finger 90 of the ejector 85.

The groove -9I extends along the underside of the support 64 from theleft end of the slot 88 to an aperture 96 provided in the end of thesupport 64 (Fig. 8). When the cam 66 is moved from left to right, whenviewed in Fig. 4, the slot 8| moves the ejector 85 toward the aperture96, and the finger 90 engages a washer resting on the cover 95 andpushes it along the groove 9I and discharges it into the aperture 96.Four fingers 91-91 are mounted pivotally in slots 98-98 provided in aboss I secured on the underside of the support 64 (Figs. 8 and 11).Springs IOI-IOI position the fingers 9'I--9'I so that portions thereofextend into the aperture 96. When the cam is moved from right to left(Fig. 4), it moves the ejector 85 away from the aperture 96, whereby thefinger 90 is withdrawn from beneath the aperture 93 and the washerspositioned therein slide downwardly until the lowermost washer rests onthe cover 95.

The washer feeding apparatus 23 is positioned on the frame 28 so thatthe axis of rotation of the indexing wheel 30 and the axis of rotationof the shafts 31 and 42 lie in the same plane and are mutuallyperpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the aperture 96. The wheels30, 35-35 and 4040 are indexed so that one each of the grooves 3I-3I,36-36 and 4I--4I is aligned perpendicular to the longitudinal axis ofthe aperture 96. The screwdriver apparatus 21 is positioned with respectto the washer feeding apparatus 23 so that the screwdriver bit 41 isaligned vertically with the aperture 96.

The actuator 55 (Figs. 3, 6 and 7) also carries a stud I09 which extendsthrough a slot I provided in the bottom of the guide 50 and has a rollerI04 mounted on the end thereof. A lever I06 has one end thereofpivotally mounted on a bracket I08 secured to the underside of the guide50 and the other end thereof connected pivotally 6.. to a connectinglink IIO. A lug III is positioned adjustably on the arm I06 so as toextend up-; wardly in the path of travel of the stud I03 secured on theactuator 55. When the actuator 55 is moved from left to right, as viewedin Figs. 6 and 7, the roller I04 of the stud I03 engages the lug III andurges the arm I06 downwardly and thereby moves the connecting link IIIldownwardly. The link H0 is connected, by means not shown, to thescrewdriver apparatus 2'! in such a manner that when the lever I06 is,moved downwardly, when viewed in Fig. 6, itactuates the screwdriver 21so as to cause the screwdriver bit 41 and the screw holding clamp 46 tomove downwardly and carry the screw 26 held by the clamp 46 into theaperture 96. The body of the screw passes through the cen-: tralaperture of a washer 22 held by the fingers 9'I-9I, and thereafter thescrewdriver bit 41 threads the screw into the tapped bore 20 of the postaligned with the aperture 96. The cylinder 60 (Fig. 2) provided forreciproeating the actuator 55 in the guide 50 is controlled by a fluidpressure system shown schematically in Fig. 12, which includes a controlvalve II3 having a piston II4 mounted freely slidable in a cylinder II5.Air under pressure is supplied from a supply source, not shown, througha pipe II6 to an inlet port of the cylinder IIi5, passes throughpassageways provided between the ends of the piston I I4, and thenthrough a pipe I H to the left end of the cylinder 60 or through a pipeI I8 to the right end of the cylinder 60 depending on the position ofthe piston II4 in the cylinder II5.

The piston II4 (Fig. 12) is so designed that, when it is located at theleft end of the cylinder I I5, it connects the air supply line I I6 tothe pipe III which conducts air to the left end of the cylinder 60, andwhen the piston II4 is positioned against the right end of the cylinderII5, it connects the supply pipe II6 to the pipe II8 which conducts theair to the right end of the cylinder 60. When the actuator is positionedat the left end of the guide 50, as viewed in Fig. 7, the lug engagesthe roller I8 provided on the push rod I6 and urges the push rodupwardly. against the action of the spring 1| and positions the support64 in its uppermost position. In this position, the support 64 holds thefingers 91-91 above the terminal strip I 0 with sufilcient clearance topermit studs II-I'I having screws and washers secured thereon to passbeneath the fingers.

A foot operated bleeder valve H9 (Figs. 1 and 12) is connected to theleft end of the cylinder H5, and when the valve H9 is actuated, it opensthe left end of the cylinder I I5, whereby air under pressure from thepipe II6 moves the piston II4 to the left end of the cylinder. Thismovement of the piston I I4 connects the pipe I H to the air supply pipeH6, whereby air under pressure en-v ters the left end of the cylinder60. At the same. time, this movement of the piston I I4 of the con-"trol valve II3 also connects the right end of the: cylinder 60 to anexhaust port in the valve H3, and the air under pressure in the rightend of the. cylinder escapes from the cylinder 60 into the, atmospherethrough a muffler I20. The admission.- of air under pressure to the leftend of the cylinder 60 causes the piston therein, not shown, to move.the actuator 55 toward the right end of the guide. 50 until it assumes aposition shown in Fig.6. This movement of the actuator 55 moves the lug80 from under the push rod I6 and the spring H mges the support .64downwardly on itsguide posts 10-10 until the roller 18 of the push rod Irests on the lowermost portion of the lug 89 (Fig. 6:). .This movementof the actuator lowers the support 64 so that the terminal post I!aligned with the aperture 9.6 .by the indexing apparatus 1 d enters theaperture 96 and the fingers 9i-9l straddle .the terminal post I! as seenin Fig. 9.

.When the actuator '55 reaches the right hand end of its stroke in theguide 59 (Fig. 6'), an adjusting screw 12! provided on the head 51 ofthe actuator 55 operates a .bleeder valve 22 secured on theguide 50 and.connected to the right end of the control valve I Hi. This operation ofthe bleeder valve [22 opens the right end of the cylinder 4 15 to theatmosphere, and air under pressure :from the pipe 116 moves the pistonH4 from the left, end of the valve to the right end of the valve (Fig.12 This movement of the piston H4 connects the left end of the cylinder89 to the exhaust muliler I29, and the right end of the cylinder to theair supply pipe H5, whereby air under pressure enters the right end ofthe cylinder 60 and urges the piston rod 58 to the left which movestheactuator 55 to the left end of the guide 5.0:as seen in Fig. 7

Operation The above-described apparatus operates in the iollowingmanner:

A terminal strip ii is mounted'in the fixture l2 and .positioned on theright hand group of rollers I.3I3 of the indexing apparatus it so thatthe end portions l8-l8 of the longitudinal row of terminal posts |'||1nearest the handwheels .33 and 43 engage the uppermost one of thegrooves3636 of the indexing wheels 35-35 that are aligned with the longitudinalaxis of the aperture 96 in the support 64. The terminal strip is movedto the left until the end [8 of the left end terminal post of this rowof posts is posltioned in the groove 3i of the indexing wheel 30 that isperpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the aperture 96 of thesupport. The uppermost groove of the indexing wheel 36 aligns the tappedbore 29 of the terminal post with the aperture 95 of the support 54, andwith a screw 26 held in the .clamp 45 and with the screwdriver bit 41 ofthe screwdriver apparatus 2?. A plurality of washers 22-42 are stored inthe tube 95 in face to face relationship, and the lowermost washer.rests on the cover 95 (Fig. 3), and fits slidahly within the walls ofthe groove ill provided inthe underside of the support 54.

Let it .be assumed that the piston l I 4 of the control valve 1 ['3(Fig. 1G) is positioned against the right end of the cylinder H5,whereby air under pressure from the pipe H5 passes through the pipe H8to the .right end of the cylinder 69. The air under pressure in theright end of the cylinder El} holds its piston against the left end ofthe cylinder 69 which in turn locates the .ac-

tuator 55 at the left end of the guide 56 (Fig. 7).

In this position, the lug 3!] on the actuator engages "the end of thepush rod 76 and holds the support 64 (Fig.3) to its uppermost, position,and also vholds the cam 6'5 (Fig. 4) at the left end of the support asand the stud I03 out of engagement with the lug Ill secured on the arm106. This position of the stud I63 allows the arm I66 to assume anoblique position (Fig. 7) and maintains the connecting link i E0 in sucha position that the screwdriver apparatus 21 (Fig. 1) is inoperative.'When the cam 56 is at the left end of the support, the slot 8| in thecam positions 8 the ejector so that the end of the finger is positionedslightly to the left of the lowermost washer 22 positioned in the bore93 provided in the support 64 .(Fig. 4)

When the apparatus is arranged in this manher, the foot operated bleedervalve H9 is actuated to open the left hand end of the valve H3 to theatmosphere. As a result, the air under pressure from the pipe ll=6 movesthe piston H4 of the valve from the right end of the valve to the leftend of the valve. When the piston H4 is moved in this manner, itconnects the left-(end of the cylinder 60 to the pipe H6, and air underpressure flows through the valve and through the pipe IT into the leftend of the cylinder 66. The admission of air under pressure in the leftend of the cylinder 60 moves the piston rod 58 (Figs. 7 and 12) to theright, and the piston rod 58 moves theactuator 55 from left to right onthe guide 50, when viewed in Fig. 6.

'The initial movement of the actuator 55 on the guide 50 moves the lug89 from under the push rod 16, and the spring ll (Fig. 3) moves thesupport 64 downwardly on the posts Hi-40 until the roller 18 on the endof the push rod engages the lowermost portion of the lug 80.

This movement of the support positions the resilient fingers ill-91astride the terminal post aligned with the aperture 96 inthe support 64by the indexing apparatus [4 as seen in Fig. 9. At the same time thatthe support 64 moves downwardly due to the initial movement of theactuator 55, the cam 66 is moved to the right by the actuator. Movementof the cam 66 causes the slot 8i (Fig. 4) to urge the ejector85 towardthe aperture 9.6 in the end of the support 64. This movement of theejector slides the finger 90 in the groove 9! toward the aperture 96.The end of the finger 96 engages the lowermost washer positioned in theaperture 93 and resting on the cover .95, and slides the washer alongthe groove 9| and the cover 95, and discharges it into the aperture 96.The washer falls downwardly until it rests on the portions of theresiliently-mounted fingers 9l-3l projecting within the aperture 96. Bythe time the washer has traveled from the aperture 93 to the aperture 36by this movement of the ejector, the support 6 has moved to itslowermost position, and the washer is supported by the fingers veryclose to the top of the terminal post i"! positioned in the aperture 96.

The actuator 55 continues to move to the right, and the follower 83 ofthe ejector passes from the slot 85 into the slot 82. Since the slot 82is parallel to the path of travel of the cam 66, the engagement of thefollower 83 by the slot 82 does not move the ejector 85,, but merelyholds it in the position to which it was .moved by the slot 6|.

When the actuator 55 reaches the right hand end of its stroke on theguide 55, the stud I93 engages the lug ill and moves the arm I06 to asubstantiallyhorizontal position (Fig. 6). This movement of th arm Hi6moves the connecting link lit downwardly, and the connecting link is inturn connected to operate the screwdriver apparatus 2'! so that theclamp 45 holding a screw 2% and the screwdriver bit 41 are moveddownwardly until the endoi the screw passes through the aperture in thewasher held by the fingers 9'l'9'l and engages the tapped bore 20provided in the post aligned with the aperture 96. ,At this point, theclamp 46 is removed from the screw, and the screwdriver bit 4? continues.its downward movement and threads "the screw .into

end of the post. When the bit 41 threads the screw into the tapped borea predetermined distance, the screwdriver bit 41 and clamp 46automatically are returned to their uppermost positions.

When th actuator t reaches the end of its travel to the right in theguide 50, the adjusting screw I2I mounted on the head 51 of the actuatoractuates the bleeder valve I22 (Figs. 6 and 12) to connect the righthand end of the control valve H3 to the atmosphere. When the bleedervalve I22 is actuated by the adjusting screw, air under pressureentering the cylinder H5 of the control valve moves the piston H4 to theright end of the cylinder H5. This movement of the piston I I4 opens theleft hand end of the cylinder 60 to the exhaust munier I28, and connectsthe pipe H3 to the supply pipe H6. The admission of air under pressureto the right end of the cylinder 5! moves the piston rod 58 to the left,which in turn moves the actuator .55 from its position shown in Fig. 6to its position shown in Fig. 7. The movement of the actuator 55 in thisdi-- rection, that is, from right to left, moves the cam 66 in the samedirection, and the slot 8| engages the follower 83 and moves the ejector85 in a direction away from the aperture 96.

When the ejector reaches a position shown in Fig. 4, all the washers inthe tube 94 drop down in the tube until the lowermost washer rests onthe cover 95 and Within the groove 9 I. This movement of the actuator 55also brings the lug 89 under the roller 18 of the push rod 16 and raisesthe support 64 to its uppermost position (Fig. 3), and disengages thestud I03 and the roller Ifl t from the lug III. When the roller Ifi irides on the lug H I, the arm I06 and the connecting link H0 return totheir respective positions as shown in Fig. 7.

After the actuator 55 returns to the left end of the guide 59, thehandwheel 33 of th indexing device It is turned in a counterclockwise direction when viewed in Fig. l to position the next succeeding terminalpost I! in the longitudinal row of studs engaged by the grooves inindexing wheels 35-35 and 40-40 beneath the aperture 96 in the support64. The foot operated bleeder valve H9 then is actuated to bleed airfrom the left end of the control valve H3, and f air under pressureentering the valve moves the piston II 4 from the right end of the valveto the left end of the valve. When the piston I M is positioned againstthe left end of the cylinder I I5, air from the supply pipe H6 passesinto the pipe Ill and nters the left end of the cylinder 60 causing thepiston rod 58 to move to the right and move the actuator 55 from itsposition shown in Fig. 7 to its position shown in Fig. 6.

This movement of. theactuator. 55 lowers the support 64 so that thefingers 9l'91 are positioned astride the terminal post aligned with theaperture 96 and actuates the cam 66 and the ejector 55 in the mannerdescribed hereinabove to position a washer 22 on the fingers ill-9'2.When the actuator 55 reaches the right end of its stroke on the guide,it actuates the arm Hi6 and the connecting link I I E] to render thescrewdriver apparatus Z'i operative to position a screw 26 on theterminal post and thread the screw into the tapped bore of the post tosecure a washer on the post. At the same time, the ad justing screw I2!actuates the bleeder valve I22, and opens the right end of the controlvalve H3 to the atmosphere, whereby air under pressure 10 from the pipeI It moves the piston H4 to the right end of the cylinder H5.

When the piston I I4 is in this position, air from the supply pipe H5passes from the valve I It to the pipe I I8, enters the right end of thecylinder GI), and moves the actuator to the left until it reaches theleft end of its stroke on the guide 58. This movement of the actuatoragain elevates the support 64 to its uppermost position, and moves theejector as on the support 84 in a direction away from the aperture 96 sothat the washers 22-42 in the tube drop down until the lowermost washerrests on the cover 85 and in the groove 9|.

The handwheel 33 of the indexing apparatus I4 is turned to align thenext succeeding terminal post I! of the terminal strip II with theaperture 3t. Ihe bleeder valve H9 is actuated to move the actuator 55 soas to lower the support 64, position a washer on the fingers 91-91, andactuate the screwdriver apparatus 21 to secure a washer on the terminalpost by a screw 26 in the manner described hereinabove. This operationof the valve H8 and the indexing apparatus I4 are repeated to secure awasher and screw on each terminal post of the terminal strip I While theabove-described apparatus is par ticularly adapted. for feeding washersin position to be assembled on the terminal post of a terminal strip, itis to be understood that the washer feeding apparatus may be modified tofeed articles of various sizes and shapes in position to be assembled onvarious types of piece parts without departing from the spirit and scopeof the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. An apparatus for feeding articles, which comprises a verticallymovable support having a vertical aperture extending through one endthereof and a plurality of slots equally spaced about and extendingradially outward from the aperture, a plurality of fingers one for eachslot mounted pivotally in the slots, a plurality of springs one for eachfinger for resiliently pivoting the fingers to cause a portion of eachfinger to protrude into the aperture, means provided on the support forstoring a stack of articles spaced from the aperture and the slots, abar mounted slidably on the support for pushing the lowermost article inthe stack across the support and into the aperture so that the articledrops onto and rests on top of the portions of the fingers protrudinginto the aperture, an actuator for reciprocating the bar to movearticles successively from the stack to the fingers, cam meansassociated with the actuator for moving the support upwardly when thebar is in position to engage the lowermost article in the stack,

and spring means for normally urging the support downwardly towards thecam means and to brin the fingers astride an object on which one of thearticles is to be assembled.

2. An apparatus for feeding washers successively to a position wherethey may be mounted on an object by article assembling apparatus, whichcomprises a base having a plurality of vertical arms, a supportvertically movable upon said arms, said support having a verticalapertu-re extending therethrough and a plurality of slots equally spacedabout and. extending radially outward from the aperture, a plurality offingers one for each slot mounted pivotally in the slots, a plurality ofsprings one for each finger for resiliently pivoting the fingers tocause a portion of each finger to protrude into the aperture, a tubularhopper positioned on the support for storing a stack of washers spacedfrom the hopper to the fingers, cam means associated with the actuatorfor moving the support up wardly when the ejector is in position toengage the lowermost washer in the hopper, and spring means for normallyurging the support downwardly towards the cam means and to bring thefingers astride an object on which one of the washers is to be mountedby the article assembling apparatus.

3. An apparatus for. feeding washers successively to a position wherethey may be mounted on an object by article assembling apparatus, whichcomprises a horizontal base having a plurality of vertical arms, asupport vertically movable upon said arms, support having avertiand'aplurality of slots equally spaced about and extending radiallyoutward from the aperture,

a plurality of fingers one for each slot mounted pivotally in the slots,a plurality of springs one for each finger for resiliently pivoting thefingers to cause a portion of each finger to protrude into the aperture,a tubular hopper positioned on the support for'storing a stack ofwashers spaced from the aperture and the slots, an ejector mountedslidably on the support for pushing the lowermost washer'in the hopperacross the support and, into the aperture so that the washer drops ontoand rests on top of the portions of the fingers protruding into theaperture, an actuator movably' mounted on the base for reciprocating theejector to move washers successively from the hopper to the fingers, arod secured to and depending from said support, a roller journalled uponthe lower end of said rod, a lug protruding upwardly from and movablewith said actuator for engaging the roller and thereby moving thesupportv upwardly when the ejector is in positionto engage the lowermostwasher in the hopper, and spring means for normally urging the supportdownwardly to bring the roller into the path of the lug on the actuatorand to place the fingers astride an object on which one of the washersis to be mounted by the article as sembling apparatus.

4. An apparatus, for feeding washers successively to a position wherethey may be mounted on an object by article assembling apparatus, whichcomprises a base having a horizontal guideway and provided with aplurality of vertical arms, a support vertically movable upon said arms,said support having a vertical aperture extending through one endthereof and a plurality of slots equally spaced about and extend:- ingradially outward from the aperture, a plurality of fingers one for eachslot mounted pivotally in the slots, a plurality of springs one for eachfinger for resiliently pivoting the fingers to cause a portion of eachfinger to protrude into the aperture, a tubular hopper positioned on thesupport for storing a stack of. washers spaced from the aperture and theslots, a groove. provided in the support for guiding a washer from thebottom of the hopper to the aperture, an ejector mounted slidably on thesupport so that one end thereof normally is positioned in the grooveadjacent to the lowermost washer stored in the hopper, a followermounted on the: opposite end of the ejector, a cam mounted slidably onthe support and having a slot therein for receiving the follower, anactuator slidably mounted in the guideway in the base and connected tosaid cam for reciprocating the ejector to push the lowermost washer inthe hopper along the groove and into the aperture so that the washerdrops onto and, rests on top of the portions of the fingers protrudinginto the aperture, means for reciprocating the actuator to move washerssuccessively from. the hopper to the fingers, a rod secured to and.depending from said support, a roller journalled upon the lower end ofsaid rod, a lug protruding. upwardly from and movable with said actuatorfor engaging the roller and thereby moving the support upwardly when theejector is in position to engage the lowermost washer in the hopper, andspring means for normally urging the support downwardly to bring theroller into the path of the lug on the actuator and to place the fingersastride an object on which one of the washers is to be mounted by thearticle assembling apparatus.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTSNetherlands Oct. 1 1-929

